Disability Evaluation Analyst Iii 

(Female, Age 36) from Sacramento, CA

This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 36 who works as a Disability Evaluation Analyst Iii in Sacramento, CA. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.

At a Glance

Current Job

Basic data on your current job

Job Title Disability Evaluation Analyst Iii
Salary $55,000
Other Compensation None Set
Hours/Week 32
Company Size (not answered)
Location Sacramento, CA
Years Experience 11 years

Career Ratings

Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)

Years in Career 0
Education (not answered)
Income Rating 0 / 10
Interest Rating 0 / 10
Work-Life Rating 0 / 10
Fulfilment Rating 0 / 10

Current job Q&A

Describe the type of organization you work for.
The state of California. The program is also funded by the US government

Describe your job role and responsibilities.
Adjudication of social security disability claims. Includes analysis of medical records and applying program regulations.

Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
Health Insurance, Dental Insurance, 401K, 8 hours vacation per month, 6.4 hours sick leave per month, 13 holidays, personal holiday

Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
well compensated

Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
I work with others via phone calls (this varies from day to day) and within the office. However, a great deal of my job is independent which I really enjoy. I do like my coworkers and feel that it is a pleasant atmosphere

Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes

Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes

Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
I work on other employees caseloads when they are out of the office. We also get feedback from each other. Our supervisors provide guidance on difficult issues and give us instructions regarding program changes. I work directly with doctors in the office to come up with an overall decision on claims.

Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 2
Benefits: 3
Hours: 1
Co-Workers: 6
Supervisors: 5
Job Title: 8
Level of Responsibility: 7
The Actual Work: 4

A day in the life of…

Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:

5am to 6am
6am to 7am
7am to 8am Arrive at work. Check voice mail. Check e-mail. Go through “tickler” to see what records have come in
8am to 9am open cases make phone calls request records Read records that have come in and summarize for the medical consultants. Give proposed decisions and fill out RFC forms for medical consultants
9am to 10am Same as 8-9 except no case openings. Also close cases meaning they have a decision and need to be processed. Write letters of denial if this applies. Order medical examinations for cases where more information is needed.
10am to 11am Same as above
11am to 12pm Same as above & break
12pm to 1pm Same as above and break
1pm to 2pm Same as above
2pm to 3pm Same as above
3pm to 4pm Same as above
4pm to 5pm Leave work
5pm to 6pm
6pm to 7pm
7pm to 8pm
8pm to 9pm
9pm to 10pm
10pm to 11pm
11pm to 12am

Table of Contents

How you got your job

How did you get your current job?
Friend/school/internet combination

What was the application process?
submit application and resume. Application was paper initially. When I was promoted to a higher level it was electronic

Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
Yes. The initial level involved one interview where I was interviewed by a panel. When I was promoted to the III level I had to complete a PRE form which is basically a written document answering detailed interview type questions. I then interviewed with a panel of supervisors from my job site.

If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
Don’t remember specifics. They mostly involved organizational issues, dealing with difficult job related situations, etc

Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes. This job has so many facets to it that you have to learn a great deal just through time and experience. However, my employer provided the building blocks I needed

Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
Yes, for the original level there was 6 months of “probation” where we had intense medical/body system/program training followed by 6 months of having a reduced case load while we applied out knowledge. For the III level that I am at now, we had a 1 week training academy.

Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes I have a degree in the science field specializing in medicine and a minor in human development. I also had several internships during college that related to medicine/psychology

If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
See above

If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Get as much training in the medical and psychiatric fields as you can. Learn how to multitask efficiently, type well and read fast. A college degree will help you get the position faster than “moving up the ladder”

What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
Strong organization skills. You need to be self sufficient regarding case load management. You are dealing with a detailed government program with many regulations that have to be followed, medical conditions that you need to know about, volumes of information you need to be able to manuever through quickly to get the information you need. Some knowledge of medical terminology and anatomy is helpful. You need to be able to work well on your own but also be a team player. You need to be able to communicate efficiently with people who are mentally ill and/or poorly educated all the way up to highly trained surgeons and medical professionals.

Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Yes

What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Learn to organize your work in a way that works for you. Do this before your case load gets too large. Learn to recognize what is important to the program and what is not so you can quickly weed out information you don’t need

Long-term career plans

Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
For now it is. Work is not my life. Right now work is something that I need to provide financial security to live my life comfortably. This job provides that. I feel comfortable with what I do and am compensated well for it so I see no reason to change that right now

What are your current career goals?
To stay where I am at

Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
N/A

Educational background

Please list your educational background:

High School GPA:3.9

GPA School Degree
College (Undergraduate)
or Technical/Vocational
2.8? UC Davis Bachelor of Science/Biological Science
Graduate or Professional
(Masters or Doctorate)

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